Almost Perfect
by Paige242
Summary: It’s Christmas Eve, and Michael reflects on his life, his wife, and his son. MM Future Fic


_I am probably the last person to start watching Roswell- I just discovered it over the winter break, and can't believe I never watched it when it was actually on the air._

_I know this story is a bit late (and not all that good) but it's been floating around in my head and I had to write it down._

_It takes place about 10 years after the finale. The group has gone their separate ways and Michael reflects on his life, Maria, and their son one Christmas eve… _

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_The Guerin household - Christmas Eve_

"You just have to concentrate." Michael said gently as he plucked a bright red Christmas ornament off of the tree that now adorned the living room of his family's apartment. "Watch."

His seven year old son, Will, stared with wide eyed fascination as the ornament in his father's outstretched hand suddenly changed from red to silver.

"Cool." The boy whispered- awed, as always, by even the simplest displays of alien powers.

Michael chuckled and handed the ornament over to his son. "Now you try." He said, giving the boy an encouraging smile. "See if you can change it back to red."

Will nodded and turned his gaze down to the small object, a look of intense determination on his young face. As his sons eyes narrowed and his lips drew into a tight line, Michael couldn't help but be reminded of his lovely, but stubborn, wife. Everyone always said that the boy was more like him, but there was no doubt in his mind that Will had inherited his strength and determination from Maria- they could both achieve anything if they put their minds to it.

'_Crack'_

Michael looked up to see that the glass ornament had shattered in the boy's hand.

"I didn't mean too…" Will began, his big brown eyes welling with frustrated tears. As usual, the boy was being far too hard on himself- no matter how many times Michael and Maria told him that it was okay to make mistakes, he always seemed to get mad when things didn't go exactly as planned.

"Don't worry." Michael said gently as he passed his hand over the broken object, magically making it whole once again. "That sort of thing used to happen to me all the time. I didn't have good control over my powers until I was more then twice your age."

"Really?" the boy asked with a slight sniffle.

"Really." He replied. "Now come on…try it again. I know you can do it."

Will drew a deep breath and returned to his former state of concentration.

As Michael took a moment to observe the scene before him, he could hardly suppress the grin that was tugging at the sides of his mouth. Even though he knew it was real, there were still days when his entire life felt like it was too good to be true. As a child, he never could have guessed that he would one day end up with such a wonderful family, living such a comfortable life. He had been Michael Guerin- the poor welfare kid, the outsider…the alien.

He had been convinced that, as much as he desired it, domestic human happiness was not part of his destiny.

Even after he had met Maria- his one true love- he had remained certain that he would never lead an idyllic life. No matter how hard he tried to ignore it, he always knew that he wasn't human, and that he could never give her the normalcy she deserved. He knew that she would leave him one day- and he knew that he loved her too much to force her to stay. But, by some miracle, she _had_ stayed and, after years of running, they had finally managed to settle down and lead fairly normal lives.

Granted, things still weren't perfect; their close knit group of friends had been forced to split up and, for everyone's safety, communication between them had to remain limited. He hadn't seen Max or Isabel in over four years, and he knew that Maria was equally distraught about not being able to see her mother and Liz. They knew, however, that they had little choice. Most of the special unit had been disbanded, but the threat had not completely disappeared. The FBI continued to search for their whereabouts and, although they had taken all possible measures to ensure that they remained hidden, the fear of discovery still loomed over their daily lives.

The good, however, still seemed to outweigh the bad. He and Maria had married several years ago, and life with her had been better then his wildest dreams. They still bickered (of course) but there was never any doubt that they loved each other intensely. Seven years ago, their love had resulted in a beautiful baby boy who Michael adored more then he had thought possible. William had brought such joy into both of their lives and had helped them overcome the pain of leaving their old lives behind.

But having Will had also brought a new array of complications. It had become clear early on in the pregnancy that the baby wasn't going to be…normal. He had developed quicker then a normal human child and by the beginning of her fourth month Maria was ready to give birth. They had, reluctantly, agreed not to seek professional care and had enlisted Liz and Isabel to act as midwives at the baby's home birth. All things considered, it had gone fairly smoothly, and when the young couple looked at their beautiful child for the first time, they had realized that it had all been worth it.

As Will grew older, it became increasingly apparent that he had inherited his father's alien gifts. Temper tantrums at their house had often been accompanied by levitating furniture and he had once knocked Maria off of her feet with a blast of energy. Knowing that it was too risky to send him to a public day care, Maria had opted to stay home with him until they were certain that he could control his powers. Although this put a bit of a financial strain on the family, they both knew that it was for the best and Michael began to pick up more hours at the bar he now helped manage.

Despite his general contentment, there were times when Michael wished that things could be different. He hated that his innocent son would face a life of danger because he was...what he was. Max's son had, by some miracle, turned out completely human and, last he had heard, Isabel and Jessie's little girl (who had been born three years after Will) had not yet exhibited any alien abnormalities either. It figured that he would be the only one to mess up his child's life. Maria repeatedly assured him that things would be alright and he was continually amazed by the way his young son coped with being a non-human in a human world. He supposed that the combination of a stable home and a father who understood what it was like (two luxuries Michael had never had) made the situation easier for his son then it had been for him.

"I did it!" Will exclaimed suddenly, distracting Michael away from his musings. "I made it red again!"

The proud father smiled at his son's accomplishment. He had indeed managed to turn the ornament back to its original colour and was now grinning from ear to ear.

"See, I knew you could do it." Michael said as he ruffled his son's hair affectionately.

"Do what?" Maria asked as she made her way into the living room, a tray of warm Christmas cookies in hand. "What did I miss?"

At the sight of his mother, Will jumped up excitedly and dashed across the room. "I changed the Christmas ornament from silver to red!" he said, holding it up for her to see. "At first I blew it up, but then daddy fixed it, and when I tried it again it worked!"

Maria chuckled at his enthusiasm as she set the try of cookies down on the coffee table. "Good for you honey." She replied, giving him a gentle kiss on the top of his head.

Satisfied by her praise, Will dashed back across the room to put the ornament back on the glittering tree. Still smiling, Maria sat down next to Michael on the couch and snuggled into his broad chest. "Only in this family…" she muttered, shaking her head in amusement.

Michael chuckled and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. "You know you wouldn't want it any other way."

"You're right. I wouldn't." She agreed.

They both watched as their excitable son examined a few of the presents under the tree before coming over to join his parents on the couch.

"Those cookies look yummy." He said, reaching out to grab one. "What kind are they?"

"Sugar cookies- with extra sugar." Maria replied.

The boys eyes widened in anticipation. "My favourite!" he exclaimed. "Do you have any…"

But before he could finish his question, his mother (knowing what he was about to ask) pulled a small bottle of Tabasco sauce out of her shirt pocket and handed it to him.

Will smiled and quickly began to unscrew the bottle's lid. "Great! Thanks!" he said as he began to pour the substance over his large star shaped cookie.

"I am never going to understand how you spaceboys can stomach that combination." Maria chuckled as she watched her son enjoy his treat.

Michael shrugged and reached out to grab a cookie for himself. "It's good." He said, picking the bottle up off of the table and pouring some onto his own snack. "You should try it some time."

"I think I'll pass." The woman replied with a smirk.

"Suit yourself." Michael replied, his mouth now full of Tabasco covered cookie. "Mmmm, these are amazing. As usual."

Maria smiled. "Thanks." she began, pleased that her husband and son were enjoying their bizarrely flavoured treats. "It's my mom's old recipe…" Her tone darkened somewhat as she finished her sentence- thinking about her mother, especially around the holidays, always got her down. Michael knew that it was hard for her not to have Amy around, and he wished that there was a way that he could make it all better. It was his fault, after all.

If she had fallen for a nice normal human and stayed in Roswell she wouldn't have to deal with the pain of separation and home sickness. Her mother could have seen her grandchildren grow up, and Maria could have gone about her daily life without worrying about the FBI, alien invasions, and all of the other things that seemed to follow Michael where ever he went.

He wished it didn't have to be this way…but it was…and he couldn't imagine going through it without her. He thanked whatever higher power that was out there for sending him such a strong, beautiful, and amazing woman.

"I know you wish she was here." Michael said as he gently stroked his wife's blonde hair. "I'm so sorry that we had to leave."

"It's not your fault Michael." She replied, giving him a reassuring kiss. "I choose to leave, and as much as I miss home I don't regret that decision. I can't even think about life without you and Will…"

"You could have had a normal life Maria…"

She shook her head and gave him a slow, beautiful smile. "Normal is overrated. I'm much happier here with my two favourite spaceboys."

Michael smiled back, awed once again that he had found such a wonderful woman. Unable to resist, he drew her in for a deep and passionate kiss, and for a moment he found himself lost in the ecstasy of the moment.

"Ugh. Stop being so mushy." A voice said, breaking them out of their embrace. The couple turned to see their son starring at them with a look of disgust on his face.

"Come on." The boy continued, grabbing his father's hand and yanking him towards the kitchen. "We have to get a snack ready for Santa. I need help getting the milk out."

Having little choice but to follow his son, Michael gave Maria another quick peck on the cheek and allowed himself to be led away.

"Do you think Santa likes Tabasco sauce with his cookies too?" Will asked as the two men of the house walked into the kitchen.

Michael smiled. "Yeah…I bet he does."

"Good. They taste better that way." The boy replied as he began to rustle around in the cupboards for an appropriate snack to leave for 'Santa'.

Michael hung back for a second and watched his son carry out his mission.

Sure, things weren't perfect, and he was sure that many complications awaited them in the future…

But for now, life was good.

And Michael Guerin was happier then he had ever been.

_The End_

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_A/N If you liked it, please review :) It'll make me smile._


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